Just two hours could strengthen your team. Engage team members in exciting, interesting and downright fun activities that encourage them to interact and work together. This gives them an informal opportunity to learn about each other -- their strengths and weaknesses -- as well as a chance to feel successful as a group.

Work Together

Create a murder mystery, treasure or scavenger hunt for teams. These games require team members to work together to solve a problem or find things. Provide teams with different clues or goals so they must communicate with each other to find missing pieces to solve the mystery or find the treasure. Or have teams create a video and compete in a video contest or conduct an office Olympics. Teams will have to work together to assign roles or identify members' strengths so they know how to optimize the overall talent in the team.

Get Talking

Play games that require team members to communicate with each other. Simple games like Pictionary or Jeopardy! are fun to play in teams. These games require members to ask each other questions and in the process, they learn about each other. Or have members spend two hours working on a charity project. Teams can make crafts or cook a meal together and donate what they make to a charity. This allows members to communicate with each other while feeling good about what they are doing.

Make Decisions

Give teams a challenging task that requires decision-making and negotiating. For example, hold a box-car race and ask teams to build their own car from the materials you provide. Ask teams to select who will drive the car in a race. Or build a pipeline for marbles, using pipe tubing. Set criteria for the pipeline that will require a degree of strategy for team members to plan. If you have a hard time coming up with a challenge, ask teams to challenge each other. You may be surprised by the ideas they come up with and the fun they have in the process.

Build Trust

Build trust between employees by making them rely on each other to accomplish a task. One of the easiest ways to do this is to take away the ability of each member to accomplish a task alone. Place team members in pairs and blindfold one. Then have the blindfolded individual build something using the verbal instructions from their partner. Or send the blindfolded individual on a mission, such as crossing a "minefield" of obstacles that her partner helps her navigate through verbal coaching. Give each person the chance to experience each role.

About the Author

Sara Mahuron specializes in adult/higher education, parenting, budget travel and personal finance. She earned an M.S. in adult/organizational learning and leadership, as well as an Ed.S. in educational leadership, both from the University of Idaho. Mahuron also holds a B.S. in psychology and a B.A. in international studies-business and economics.